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Event planning is often described as “organized chaos.” If you’ve ever been in charge of one, you know it’s not for the faint of heart. There are a thousand moving parts, and a single misstep can ripple across the entire experience. At vFairs, we’ve served more than thirty thousand events across industries since 2016, helping event planners navigate these very challenges. Over the years, we’ve seen what trips up even the most seasoned professionals, and more importantly, what helps them overcome it. That’s why in this blog, we’re bringing you the most critical event planning challenges you need to anticipate from day one. These aren’t just the obvious roadblocks anyone could guess; they come straight from real-world lessons, distilled from our hands-on experience with some of the world’s most reputable event planners. And because knowing the challenge is only half the battle, we’ll share practical ways to tackle each one with confidence and clarity. Curious? Let’s dig in!
Event planning means moving against time. Things are going to be uncertain. For example, registrations can be lagging behind the target number big time, or speakers might start to back out. Let’s discuss some common uncertainties that are plaguing event planners today.
Remember when most people used to sign up for events months in advance? Yeah, those days are gone. Now, the majority of registrations happen in the last two months before a conference or any other event. Talk about nerve-wracking for planners. Muhammad Younas, CEO of vFairs, shared how registration habits have shifted, based on his experience across many events.
Make your event irresistible. Don’t just list features; spell out why it matters. Will it save time? Cut stress? Give people access to expertise they can’t get anywhere else? If your event is compelling enough, attendees will even fight to get budget approval from their bosses.
You can’t just pop up a few weeks before and expect everyone to care. Stay in touch year-round. Share useful content, understand what your audience is really struggling with, and keep adding value. Happy attendees become your best marketers. They’ll spread the word faster than any ad campaign.
Start promoting early, but pace yourself. Kick off campaigns a few weeks out, then ramp things up as the date gets closer. Use genuine FOMO, like “early bird pricing is ending soon” or “last seats available”, without going overboard. Make sure your landing pages are crystal clear and easy to navigate. And don’t be shy about reminders, emails, SMS, even WhatsApp nudges can work wonders if done thoughtfully.
It’s not just attendees who are signing up late. Sponsors and exhibitors are also dragging their feet. What used to be a fairly predictable commitment timeline has now turned into a waiting game. Uncertainty around budgets, economic conditions, and ROI expectations means sponsors often hold off until the very last minute before signing on the dotted line. For event planners, this creates serious headaches. You’ve got venue contracts, catering, and marketing plans that need solid numbers months in advance, but the dollars from sponsors aren’t guaranteed until much later. The result? A constant balancing act between making firm commitments and staying flexible enough to adjust when sponsors finally confirm.
The key to managing this shift lies in building trust and reducing risk for your partners. Sponsors need to feel confident that your event will deliver the right audience and measurable results. That means offering clear data from past events, providing flexible package options, and staying transparent in your communication. When sponsors feel reassured, they’re more likely to commit earlier and stick around for future events.
For many organizers, choosing the right event tech is one of the toughest challenges in event planning. The setup, the integrations, the onsite support, it can all feel overwhelming. What sounds simple on a sales call (“native integration in five minutes!”) often turns into weeks of back-and-forth. The gap between what vendors promise and what planners actually experience is huge, and that’s where the frustration builds. Here are common event challenges planners are facing today with event tech:
The event tech landscape is crowded. There are about 400 players in the market, all with compelling promises. You’d find a platform for registration, another for engagement, another for email, and ten more for things you didn’t even know you needed. For busy planners, keeping up with this flood of tools is exhausting. Sitting through demo after demo feels like a full-time job, and by the end, everything sounds the same.
There are three main principles to select the ideal event tech platform.
Avoid juggling multiple tools. Look for one that covers everything from registration and ticketing to mobile apps and more.
Your platform should adapt to your needs, not force you into a fixed structure. Look for a solution that lets you stay in control while staying flexible. Ask yourself:
Modern audiences expect tailored experiences, and having both flexibility and control is what allows you to deliver them with precision.
This often gets overlooked, but it is what makes or breaks your event when pressure builds. The right platform will not just hand you a dashboard. It will assign you a dedicated project manager who works as an extension of your team, helping you troubleshoot, customize, and execute your vision smoothly. At vFairs, for instance, this hands-on support has helped organizers avoid last-minute chaos and keep their plans on track.
AI has become the hot buzzword in event tech, with vendors promising digital assistants, smart recommendations, and automated workflows. But here’s the challenge: many of these tools don’t always live up to the hype, and even when they do, event planners often lack the guidance to make the most of them. AI is not yet fully independent. It works best for tasks like research, data handling, or automating repetitive steps, but only when planners know where and how to apply it. Without clear direction or literacy around its use, AI ends up being an underutilized add-on instead of a true time-saver.
Planners must take a critical, informed approach when selecting tools. The key is to evaluate AI tools based on their actual capabilities, and not just rely on marketing claims. Test the tools in real-world scenarios and ensure they align with your event goals, such as streamlining registration, personalizing experiences, or summarizing content post-event. Dahlia El Gazzar, a reputed event planning strategist, shared that the real use cases of AI lie in improving the overall workflows of event planning.
Suggested Tool: Glue Up is a great tool to personalize event registration at scale.
Suggested Tool: Breeze AI is great for this.
Suggested Tools: You can use HeyGen to generate video-based content, and ChatGPT for content summarization.
Suggested Tool: Smart Matchmaking by vFairs.
Suggested Tool: AI Writing Assistant by vFairs.
Suggested Tool: AI Event Assistant by vFairs.
Suggested Tool: AI Reporting Chatbot by vFairs.
Featured Tools: SimpleTix, Bold Upsell, and Algolia are great for personalized upselling.
Integrations are the biggest promise and the biggest letdown in event tech, exposing some of the current issues in the event industry. Every platform claims to have “native integrations” that take “five minutes to switch on.” The truth? For most organizers, it’s nowhere near that simple. Instead of clean data flowing from one system to another, planners end up exporting CSVs, uploading spreadsheets, and manually fixing errors. This eats up time that should be spent designing better experiences. And these integration gaps don’t just waste time; they limit what organizers can actually do. Imagine wanting to customize your registration form so first-timers and VIPs have different journeys. Without smooth integrations, you’re stuck with a rigid, one-size-fits-all experience.
There are multiple ways you can vet a platform’s integration promises. First, read third-party reports. For example, Skift’s Event Tech Almanac is a great, unbiased report that consolidates the performance of a wide array of event tech providers. They rate vendors on features, support, and integrations, providing a holistic comparison. vFairs nailed a perfect 6/6 on integrations, proving our integration promises aren’t just fluff. Second, check out reviews on platforms like G2 and Capterra. These reviews give you insights into the real-world experiences of other event professionals, particularly regarding how well integrations work in practice. Lastly, take full advantage of a sales demo. Be upfront with the vendor about your specific event needs so they can tailor the demo to show you the integration capabilities most relevant to your situation. This hands-on approach will give you a clearer picture of whether the platform can truly deliver on its promises.
Another sore spot is security. At high-profile events, where sensitive data like passport numbers might be collected, Single Sign-On (SSO) and strict access validation are critical. Yet many platforms don’t make it easy to set these up. This leaves organizers juggling between providing a seamless experience and ensuring airtight security.
Prioritize platforms that offer robust security features like Single Sign-On (SSO) and multi-factor authentication. These tools ensure a secure experience for attendees, especially when handling sensitive data like passport numbers. Plus, choose platforms that comply with data protection regulations. For example, vFairs complies with all industry benchmarks like GDPR, ISO/IEC, ensuring your data remains safe, and you have granular access controls.
An event isn’t judged only by its speakers or sessions; it’s judged by the experience. From check-in to closing, every friction point adds up. A slow entry can kill the mood before the keynote. Confusing layouts send people wandering. Missed networking is often what they remember and share. With in-person events in full swing, expectations are sky-high. Attendees are used to seamless, one-tap experiences everywhere else, and they expect the same at events. If these moments fall flat, even the best agenda won’t save the day. Here are some challenges that create friction in the overall attendee experience:
The first impression sets the tone. Long badge lines, manual lookups, or clunky printers can turn excitement into impatience before the event even begins. Attendees arrive eager to dive in, not stand still. For some, this moment decides whether they start the day with enthusiasm or frustration, and it ripples into how they engage with the rest of the event.
Use tech-enabled entry to make a strong first impression and keep lines moving. QR code scanning works best for most attendees, while facial recognition is ideal for high-volume flows, VIPs, or areas where tighter security is critical. Set up pre-registration with automatic badge printing so badges are ready the moment guests arrive. Stagger arrival windows to prevent bottlenecks, and clearly mark fast lanes for those who’ve pre-registered. Place a greeter ahead of the kiosks to guide first-timers, ensuring scanners don’t get blocked while they figure things out.
Large convention centers or multi-hall expos can overwhelm even seasoned attendees. Poor signage, changing room assignments, or unclear directions lead to missed sessions and frustration. People end up wandering or asking staff repeatedly, wasting time that could have been spent learning or networking.
Include interactive floor maps in your event app with real-time positioning and searchable rooms. These maps serve as Google maps, but made especially for your event venue. People can we where they are, and how to get wherever they want to. You can also pair them with bold, high-contrast physical signs and session “last call” push alerts. For expos, color-code zones (e.g., Startup, Partner, Demo) so attendees can quickly orient themselves and plan their path.
Events are full of micro-questions.
Each unanswered question creates a mini bottleneck at help desks, in queues, or even in group chats, and eats into the experience. Attendees don’t want to chase information; they want it to meet them where they are.
Embed an AI assistant in your event app to answer FAQs instantly: schedules, dietary info, shuttle updates, and last-minute room changes. Back it with a live escalation option for edge cases, and place QR codes around the venue to launch it in a single scan.
For many attendees, networking is one of the main reasons to attend in person. But without structure, they default to familiar circles or aimless wandering between coffee stations. By the end of the day, they leave with a few casual hellos instead of valuable connections.
Use AI matchmaking to suggest relevant contacts, sessions, and meetups based on shared interests. Schedule “opt-in” networking blocks (e.g., “Founder–Investor Hour”) and host small, themed huddles to spark conversations. Add a quick-meet scheduling feature in the app and designate quiet meeting nooks so valuable connections actually happen.
Speakers are often the centerpiece of an event, but managing them is rarely simple. They’re usually super busy, which means late confirmations, last-minute cancellations, or delays in sending bios and slides. On top of that, every speaker has different tech needs and presentation styles. If you’re not careful, sessions can feel rushed or unpolished, leaving attendees disappointed.
The key is to keep things simple and structured. Set clear timelines right from the start about when you need bios, slides, and tech checks. Share a ready-made toolkit with branding guidelines, slide templates, and FAQs so speakers don’t have to guess what’s expected. Make sure your event management platform helps you manage speakers. It should let you collect bios, session details, and files in one place, and even send automatic reminders so you’re not chasing them over email. You can also schedule rehearsals directly through the platform, which helps speakers feel prepared and cuts down on last-minute tech issues. Lastly, always have a Plan B. Record key sessions in advance, line up a moderator who can step in, or keep backup content ready. That way, even if a speaker drops out, your event still runs smoothly.
Vendors are the unsung heroes of any event: caterers, decorators, AV teams, rental companies, you name it. But juggling multiple vendors can quickly become overwhelming. Each one has their own timelines, requirements, and communication style. If even one vendor drops the ball, the whole event can suffer. Misunderstandings, late deliveries, or scope creep are all too common when things aren’t clearly laid out.
Keep communication clear from the start. Don’t just agree on things over a call; put it in writing. Contracts should clearly mention what’s expected, by when, and at what cost. That way, there are no surprises later. It also helps to keep all vendor info in one place, like contacts, payments, and timelines, so you’re not scrambling to find details. Many event management platforms let you track vendors, set reminders, and stay on top of progress, which saves a lot of stress.
Events can quickly lose their way when there’s no clear strategy or storyline holding everything together. Instead of delivering a powerful experience, planners risk throwing features at the wall, sticking to outdated formats, or creating programs that feel more like a checklist than a journey. The result? Attendees leave without a strong takeaway, and the event fades into the noise. Here’s how this often adds up:
One of the most common event planning challenges is jumping into execution without clearly defined goals. Is the event meant to drive leads? Build community? Increase brand awareness? Too often, organizers try to do all of the above and end up doing none of them well. That’s when success metrics go sideways. For example, a team may celebrate a high email open rate, while registrations are flat. Or they may design a flashy expo hall when the real goal was to create networking opportunities. Without goals, every decision, from content to budget, feels like guesswork.
Start every event by asking the simplest but hardest question: Why are we doing this? Is it about leads, brand exposure, customer loyalty, or revenue? Once the “why” is nailed down, the “how” gets a lot easier. Build your agenda, marketing, and even your registration forms around that purpose.
Many events are still stuck in the same old formats: sprawling trade show floors, endless PowerPoints in beige ballrooms, networking over lukewarm coffee. Younger audiences, especially, are less willing to put up with it. If they’re going to leave their homes, it better be worth it.
If you want to attract the next generation of attendees, you can’t stick with the same hotel-ballroom-and-breakout formula forever. Experiment with formats that feel modern and human. Smaller gatherings are trending because they offer intimacy, better food, and more genuine conversations. Even within traditional venues, you can rethink the setup. For example, you can add lounge-style seating, interactive workshops, or curated networking instead of defaulting to rows of chairs. The goal is to make the experience worth leaving home for.
Technology is supposed to make events easier, but when “more is more” takes over, it backfires. That’s exactly what Merijn echoed during our conversation in the Epic Events podcast.
When it comes to event tech, less really is more. Instead of trying to cram in every shiny feature, focus on the handful that truly enhance the experience. Ask yourself: Does this tool make it easier for people to connect, learn, or take action? If not, cut it. It’s better to have three features that work beautifully than ten that confuse everyone. We’ve curated a highly insightful and action-oriented eBook that can help you prioritize the most relevant features in your mobile app for your audience.
Behind every event is a team, and when that team looks, thinks, and acts the same, creativity stalls. Homogeneous teams tend to recycle ideas because no one is challenging the status quo. That’s how you get cookie-cutter agendas and stale experiences year after year. Imagine designing a youth-focused event with no one under 40 on the planning team. It’s bound to miss the mark!
Great events are built by great teams, and that means diverse teams. Bring in people with different backgrounds, ages, and experiences so you don’t fall into the trap of groupthink. A youth-focused event needs young voices at the table. A global audience needs planners who understand cultural nuances. Beyond hiring, listen to the experts you already have in-house. Encourage them to challenge assumptions and bring fresh ideas. Some organizers even involve attendees in co-creating future events, crowdsourcing what matters most. The more perspectives in the mix, the stronger and more innovative your event design will be.
Engaging a diverse audience isn’t a piece of cake, especially if you want to create an experience that keeps people raving and talking even after it ends. Here are some common experience-related challenges in event management:
What is the most important event phase? It’s when your audience consumes content. If this phase is weak, the entire experience suffers. In B2B events, especially, sessions often feel like an endless stream of slides or sales pitches, leaving attendees with knowledge but no real spark to act on it. And when the content isn’t engaging, event planners usually try to cover it up with gimmicks: extra polls, gamification, or flashy interactive tools. But none of that can make up for uninspired speakers or a lack of real storytelling.
What attendees really crave is content with energy, drama, and even a touch of conflict. A conversation that feels alive, not scripted. Bring in speakers who can hook an audience. And if you’re running panels, don’t let them turn into a string of isolated opinions. Use moderators who ask sharp, provocative questions that spark real debate. A little disagreement on stage goes a long way in keeping the content worth people’s attention.
Attendees at virtual events can get distracted easily. At home, it’s easy to turn off the camera, answer emails, or even fold laundry during a session. Attendees aren’t rude. They’re just overloaded. Competing with kids, pets, and household chores is a tall order for any event. If they don’t see value upfront, they will drift off to check off things from their to-do list. The standard “fixes” often don’t work. Virtual lobbies, networking tables, or forced one-on-one introductions feel awkward and fail to recreate the organic energy of hallway chats. Instead, people want meaningful interactions that feel natural and valuable.
Event pros stress the importance of actively pulling people into the experience. Call attendees by name. Break audiences into small groups where voices actually get heard. Emotional arousal, whether excitement, curiosity, or even friendly disagreement, creates adrenaline, and adrenaline helps people remember.
If there’s one thing that can make or break an event, it’s logistics and budgets. Behind the scenes, planners are constantly juggling rising venue and travel costs, unpredictable expenses, and the never-ending pressure to “do more with less.” For startups, non-profits, and SMBs, the struggle is even more real. They want to put on impactful events, but simply don’t have the financial wiggle room of larger organizations. That means every booth, every meal, and every shipment has to be carefully thought out. Here are the most common pitfalls planners face:
Venues are eating up a bigger portion of event budgets than ever before. Rising inflation, limited availability in top cities, and extra fees for everything from AV to WiFi leave planners with little breathing room.
The best defense against ballooning venue costs is planning early and negotiating smart. Venues are far more flexible when you lock in contracts months in advance, so don’t leave it to the last minute. Here are some pro-tips to secure the right venue within your budget:
If big-city venues are out of reach, consider secondary cities, universities, or co-working spaces that can deliver the same experience for a fraction of the price.
Startups and smaller teams often misjudge the true cost of participation, especially at trade shows or expos. Booth rentals, design, shipping, and setup can be deceptively expensive. Then there’s the staffing side: extra hands for registration, tech support, or simply manning the booth all add hidden labor costs. This oversight usually leads to scrambling at the last minute, paying rush fees, overworking existing staff, or cutting corners on the attendee experience.
The solution is twofold: thoughtful planning and smart use of technology. Start with a detailed logistics checklist that accounts for everything: booth design, signage, shipping, power, WiFi, catering, and staff schedules, so nothing sneaks up on you. Then, use event tech to minimize the need for excessive staffing. For example, QR-code or facial recognition check-ins can dramatically reduce the number of staff required at entry points. Similarly, incorporating an AI-powered chat assistant into your event app can handle attendee FAQs instantly, freeing you from maintaining a large on-site help desk. These tools not only cut costs but also enhance the attendee experience with faster, smoother service. And when additional hands are needed, consider temporary staff or vendor packages that combine AV, furniture, and booth setup. Bundled deals often come at a lower overall price.
Sustainability is no longer a “nice-to-have.” Attendees expect eco-conscious practices, and many organizations want to align events with their ESG commitments. But the perception persists that green = expensive. Biodegradable cutlery, recyclable booths, or digital alternatives can feel like add-ons rather than essentials. For budget-conscious planners, this becomes a painful dilemma: deliver on sustainability expectations or stick to the bottom line.
The reality is that sustainability doesn’t always cost more; it often saves money. Going digital-first with event apps, QR codes, or e-brochures eliminates printing costs altogether. Swapping out physical swag for digital gift cards or branded experiences isn’t just eco-friendly; it’s also more appealing to attendees who don’t want to carry around tote bags of trinkets. Sourcing locally for catering, décor, and rentals cuts down shipping fees while reducing your carbon footprint. In many cases, the “green choice” turns out to be the most budget-friendly choice too, proving that sustainability and affordability don’t have to be at odds.
Even the best-laid event budgets can unravel when surprises hit. A last-minute request for upgraded catering, extra AV for a new session, or sudden travel changes, all of these can stretch your budget beyond what you planned. These changes often feel unavoidable, but the real issue is how they’re managed. Another common reason for overspending is poor expense tracking. When costs aren’t logged in detail, small add-ons, like extra badges, printing, or rush deliveries, slip by until the numbers at the end don’t match the plan.
The solution isn’t about rejecting every new request, but about managing them with foresight. Track all expenses in real time using budgeting software or your event management platform so you know exactly where funds stand. When a new request comes in, forecast its impact on the overall budget before agreeing. If it requires cutting back elsewhere, make that trade-off clear. It’s also smart to build in a buffer, typically 5–10% of your total budget, for unplanned expenses. This safety net lets you absorb surprises without derailing your finances. Here’s a great budgeting tool that can be a great help. Other than robust tracking, keep stakeholders in the loop. Communicate how new requests affect the budget to avoid conflicts later. By combining transparency, discipline, and a contingency fund, you can stop overspending before it snowballs.
One of the constant challenges in event planning is that time never feels like enough. Deadlines are tight, tasks overlap, and just when you think you’re on track, an unexpected delay, like a vendor shipment running late or a last-minute speaker cancellation, throws everything off balance. These disruptions can create a domino effect where small delays snowball into major headaches, leaving teams scrambling and important details slipping through the cracks.
The key is to plan realistically and prioritize ruthlessly. Start by breaking the entire event into smaller milestones with clear deadlines, rather than treating it as one giant to-do list. You can also use an event planning template as a helpful guide. Here’s a simple template you can start using right away. When unexpected delays pop up, and they will, shift focus to the most critical tasks first. Not everything needs to be done immediately, so identify which activities directly impact the attendee experience and tackle those first. Building in buffer time during planning is another lifesaver; it gives you breathing room for unforeseen changes without throwing the entire schedule off track. Finally, communicate clearly with your team and vendors. If something is delayed, let everyone know right away so adjustments can be made quickly. Strong time management isn’t about avoiding problems altogether, but about staying adaptable and ensuring the event stays on course despite challenges.
Event planning can drain you dry. Burnout is real, especially when there aren’t enough people to share the load. Planners often find themselves wearing ten hats at once: negotiating with vendors, fixing last-minute glitches, managing the team, and still smiling for the attendees. Add to that the classic “yes to everything” attitude, and suddenly you’re running on fumes. Staff shortages only make things worse. One sick team member or a last-minute resignation can throw the whole event off balance. And here’s another trap many planners fall into: undervaluing their own team. Instead of trusting people to do their job, they micromanage or look outside for help unnecessarily, which only adds more cost and stress.
The first step is learning to prioritize. Not everything needs to be done right away, and not every request deserves a “yes.” Protect your energy by focusing on what truly moves the needle. Next, start trusting your team. Delegate tasks and let people own their work without hovering. You’ll be surprised how much smoother things run when the load is shared fairly. Finally, always have backups for critical roles. If one person can make or break your event, you’re setting yourself up for stress. Having a few extra trained hands in the mix can make all the difference when things go south. In short, lean on your team, build safety nets, and stop saying yes to everything. That’s how you keep the stress monster in check.
If there’s one guarantee in event planning, it’s that something will go wrong. It could be the weather turning sour on the day of your outdoor gala, or the keynote speaker’s flight getting delayed. Maybe it’s the live stream crashing right when hundreds of virtual attendees are tuning in. These curveballs can derail months of planning if you don’t have a safety net. Events run on so many moving parts that even small hiccups, like a power outage or a mic not working, can feel huge in the moment. The bigger the event, the higher the stakes. And when guests or sponsors are watching, there’s little room to fumble.
The best way to handle the unexpected is to assume it will happen. That means creating a risk management plan from the start. Have backup speakers ready to step in, duplicate your critical tech (like AV equipment and Wi-Fi), and think of alternative formats in case the main plan fails. For example, if the weather ruins your outdoor setup, move people indoors without losing flow. If your star speaker cancels, keep a recorded keynote or panel discussion as a backup. And for tech, always have redundancies, extra mics, backup internet, and a tech support team on call. Planning for the “what ifs” might feel like extra work, but it’s what turns a disaster into just a small bump in the road.
Event planning isn’t for the faint of heart: it’s fast, messy, and full of curveballs. But with the right mix of preparation, flexibility, and smart tools, even the toughest challenges can be handled without burning out. From managing vendors and budgets to keeping speakers, staff, and attendees happy, it all comes down to having one clear system that keeps everything (and everyone) on track. That’s where a centralized event management platform makes all the difference. Instead of juggling ten different tools and endless spreadsheets, you get one place to plan, track, and execute with confidence. By addressing event management problems and solutions effectively, you ensure a smoother process from start to finish. Get on a demo with vFairs and see how our platform can help you deal with all these challenges with style.
Fiza Fatima
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